I went to lunch with a friend who had recently divorced.  Our luncheon reminded her to get a move on updating her estate plan and other important legal documents.  Remember family law attorneys who help clients with divorce most often don't update their clients wills or other estate planning issues.  In most cases, divorced couples no longer are interested in their ex-spouse being the beneficiary of their estate.  Here are 5 key things to update after your divorce.   

1.  Update your  Beneficiary Designations
Don't run into the trap I have seen happen too many times.  Change your beneficiary designations!  Remember, certain assets pass to a beneficiary pursuant to a form the company has on file.  It doesn't matter what your will says--this form controls!  So,  make sure you update your beneficiary forms for: retirement accounts, IRAs, life insurance, annuities and health savings accounts.

2.  Review Your Bank and Brokerage Accounts
 Believe it or not, some of your bank or brokerage accounts may be "Transfer of Death" or "Payable on Death"  accounts.  This means that at some point in time you listed a person who would inherit your account upon your death.  All the bank needs to transfer this account to that person is your death certificate.  Verify that you don't have any of these accounts, or if you do have them, make sure the person listed is who you really want to inherit your account.

3.  Update your Will
If you had a will before your divorce, most likely you were leaving most, if not all, of your estate to your spouse.  Now that you are divorced, that is most likely not the case.  Often times your divorce decree may state certain specifics as to leaving assets and if it does, make sure you bring that document when you meet with your estate planning attorney.  Your will should be prepared by an attorney who frequently works in the area of law known as estate planning and probate.  If you have minor children, your will should have some sort of testamentary trust so that your children don't have to deal with the court and so they don't inadvertently receive assets at age 18 (probably when you want them to go to college, not inherit cash outright with no control).

4.  Update Healthcare Powers
After your divorce, you may not want your ex to be the person making medical decisions for you.  Make sure you update your medical directives so that you list who you want to make medical decisions for you if you aren't able to make them yourself, who can know what is going on with you medically if you aren't able to communicate, and what to do if your in a terminal condition.  Each state has statutory language, so if you have recently moved to a new state, have your attorney updates your medical directives so they are compliant with your state's law. 

5.  Guardianship of Minor Children . . . Review this Issue!
In a perfect world, if something happened to one parent, the other parent would assume guardianship of the mi­nor child. However, that assumes that the non-custodial parent desires to raise the child and is fit to do so. If the ex-spouse is likely to assume guardianship, they will be responsible for providing a residence for the child, provide for care and support and education.  If you are concerned that your ex will not use the money you leave for your children the way you want it, then you can name someone else to serve as trustee of the trust which you set up for the benefit of your children.  You can also clarify what you want the trustee to use the money for inside of the trust, such as private school tuition, extra-curricular activities, a car at a certain age, college applications and tuition.

The bottom line . . . 
If you are recently divorced, take some time to review your legal documents.  If you are not sure everything is set just the way you want it, call your attorney and set an appointment today.  Don't put this off for another day because that other day never comes!  Many people are fearful of calling an attorney's office.  You should feel comfortable when you call and the person speaking with you on the phone should be willing to help you.  Don't feel intimidated--lawyers are just people and they are in business to help serve their clients.

p.s.  If you or your ex are thinking of remarriage, don't un-intentionally disinherit your children.   Without legal documentation to indicate otherwise, a spouse is generally entitled to one-half of the deceased spouse’s estate. Before getting remarried, sit down with a financial advisor and estate planning attorney to assess your options.